NACPRO News - July 5, 2022

NACPRO News

July 5, 2022

In This Issue...

Best Practices Forum
Member News
Research and Resources
In the News
Training
Job Announcements

About NACPRO

The National Association of County Park and Recreation Officials is a non-profit professional organization that advances official policies that promote county and regional park and recreation issues while providing members with opportunities to network, exchange ideas and best practices, and enhance professional development.

Learn more about us at: www.nacpro.org

DEADLINE FOR NEXT ISSUE

The next issue of NACPRO News will be delivered on July 19, 2022.

If you have news or an article to share, please send it to the editor by July 18.

EDITOR
Brenda Adams-Weyant
(814) 927-8212
[email protected]

NACPRO's Sponsors

Job Announcements

NEW - Park Planning & Development - Business Professional II
Sarasota County Parks, Rec & Natural Resources, Florida
$50,500 - $67,900 Annually
Closing date: Sep 30, 2022

NEW - Parks Planning
Sarasota County Parks, Rec & Natural Resources, Florida
$60,000 - $75,000 Annually
Closing date: Sep 30, 2022

NEW - Parks, Recreation & Natural Resources Management Team - Accreditation & Grants Focus
Sarasota County Parks, Rec & Natural Resources, Florida
$54,912 - $74,630 Annually
Closing date: Sep 30, 2022

NEW - Park Planning and Development Manager
Sarasota County Parks, Rec & Natural Resources, Florida
$80,000 - $92,000 Annually
Closing date: Sep 30, 2022

Executive Director/Secretary
Darke County Park District
Greenville, Ohio
$68,500 Annually or commensurate with experience
Closing date: Aug 31, 2022

Marketing and Communications Director (Information Officer IV)
Fairfax County Park Authority, Virginia
$81,572 - $135,953 Annually
Closing date: Jul 15, 2022

Parks and Recreation Director
City of Oceanside, California
$137,772 - $192,864 Annually
Closing date: Jul 15, 2022

Park Ranger I
Santa Clara County Parks and Recreation
Los Gatos, California
$68,544 - $82,900 Annually
Closing date: Jul 6, 2022

Deputy Director of Parks and Recreation
Johnson County Park and Recreation District
Shawnee, Kansas
Salary depends on qualifications
Application Deadline: Open until filled

Forester (Arborist)
Shawnee County Parks and Recreation
Topeka, Kansas
Salary: $17.37 - $19.16 Hourly
Closing date: Open until filled

Got a vacancy to fill? NACPRO will post your vacancy on our website and email a copy to our mailing list of over 1100 parks and recreation professionals for a fee of $100 for NACPRO members and $200 for non-members. NACPRO membership is $90/person.

For more information:
https://nacpro.mcjobboard.net/jobs

Best Practices Forum

Seeking your experience with cordless electric outdoor power equipment

Are you using battery-powered mowers, chainsaws, trimmers, blowers, ATVs, tractors, etc. at your park district? Have you switched to cleaner and greener technologies like propane or natural gas? We would like know about your experience with green technology.

What brands do you find to be more reliable?
Has the technology caught up with the performance we have come to expect?
What equipment is more conducive to battery power, and conversely what battery- powered equipment needs further refinement for better reliability?
In what situations are gas-powered tools more effective?
Are you using homeowner or commercial grade products?
How much extra battery power do you need to carry for a full day's work?
Has it been difficult obtaining batteries due to global supply chain issues?
Have you had any safety issues with lithium-ion batteries?

Send your feedback to [email protected]. We will compile the information and send to all members.

Got an issue you need advice on? Or a best practice you want to share? Send us the details and we will publish it in the next NACPRO News.

Member News

Greater Cleveland Partnership Presents Cleveland Metroparks CEO Brian Zimmerman with Richard Shatten Award
Courtesy of Cleveland Metroparks

OHIO - Cleveland Metroparks CEO Brian M. Zimmerman was presented with the 2022 Richard Shatten Award by Greater Cleveland Partnership (GCP) on Thursday, June 30 at GCP’s Annual Event. The Richard Shatten Award recognizes a nonprofit professional who has had significant impact while exhibiting qualities reminiscent of Richard Shatten.

Shatten led Cleveland Tomorrow (GCP’s predecessor organization) for nearly a decade and made countless contributions to the culture of civic leadership, always focused on ideas and partnerships that would make Greater Cleveland a better place to live and work. His initiatives and impact are still celebrated and felt throughout our region.

“Brian and his team have expanded and amplified Greater Cleveland’s bountiful natural resources, both land and water, making our community ever more appealing by creating access to nature and providing us all great spaces for play and serenity,” said Baiju R. Shah, president and CEO of GCP. “With this award, we celebrate his leadership, impact and commitment to our region.”

PBC Parks & Recreation Department Celebrates 50 Years of Healthy, Happy Living
Courtesy of Palm Beach

FLORIDA - For 50 years, the Palm Beach County Parks and Recreation Department (PBC Parks) has provided diverse, safe and affordable recreation services, and opportunities for healthy, happy living for its residents and visitors.

PBC Parks was created in 1951 as a department under the direction of the County Engineers Office. Reorganization in 1972 led to the separation of Parks and Engineering and so PBC Parks and Recreation Department was born. During the 1970s, 1980s and 1990s, responding to Palm Beach County's exploding population growth and its equally exploding demand for leisure services, aggressive expansion efforts were accomplished.

Today, PBC Parks is the 11th largest Park and Recreation agency in the country operating more than 110 parks and recreational facilities, spanning more than 8,500 acres, and provides organized recreational programs and services for people of all ages and abilities.

E-bikes now allowed on Toledo Metropark trails
Courtesy of 13abc.com

OHIO - The Toledo Metropark Commissioners voted last week to begin allowing electric vehicles more access.

“With the technology changes that we have seen over the last couple of years, we figured no harm, no foul,” said Chief Brad Navarre of the Toledo Metroparks Rangers. “As far as safety, we can write some good regulation to keep those people on those devices and the people using the trails safe… we said why not.”

With the longstanding ban on vehicles with motors now being lifted, those who have increasingly popular e-bikes, skateboards, and other small electric vehicles can ride alongside their non-motorized counterparts… as long as they follow four rules, the first regarding speed.

Research and Resources

Biden Administration announces historic coastal and climate resilience funding
Courtesy of NOAA

Today, U.S. Commerce Secretary Gina M. Raimondo announced funding opportunities from NOAA's $2.96 billion in Bipartisan Infrastructure Law funds to address the climate crisis and strengthen coastal resilience and infrastructure. Over the next five years, NOAA’s targeted investments in the areas of habitat restoration, coastal resilience, and climate data and services will advance ongoing federal efforts toward building climate resilience.

“This funding provides NOAA and its partners with a historic opportunity to invest in the climate smart infrastructure of the future,” said NOAA Administrator Rick Spinrad, Ph.D. “Together, we’ll help ensure our coasts are climate-ready, our fisheries and protected resources are resilient, and our climate and data products reflect the needs of decision makers.”

Maintenance of Dog Parks
Courtesy of PlayCore

Maintenance is important for many reasons. A well-maintained dog park can help dog owners and their dogs enjoy themselves in a clean, safer environment. Along with helping to promote more physical activity, a quality maintenance program has many positive outcomes.

Prior to opening, design parameters are important, as are establishing rules and incorporating attractive and visible “Dog Park Rule signs” to encourage users in following basic SPCA recommendation for a Dog Park - for more information on design and rule setting, request the guidebook Unleashed. It’s also imperative that the dog park owner plans and budgets for ongoing maintenance. While not intended to be an all-encompassing list, the following information can help dog park owners consider, modify, and adopt ongoing maintenance plans that fit their unique dog park design and volume of usage.

Remote-controlled mower takes on Forest Park: ‘It’s like Pac-Man’
Courtesy of the St. Louis Dispatch

By Gabe Barnard

MISSOURI - On a hot June day, a $65,000 machine sliced a path through an inhospitable landscape in the heart of St. Louis.

Johnny Epps stood at the top of a steep, overgrown hill off South Kingshighway Boulevard. In his hands, an industrial joystick and control box. Epps was driving one of St. Louis city’s newest pieces of equipment: a remote-controlled lawnmower.

The machine is a bright-red, 1,800-pound beast, with tank tracks, a 52-inch wide blade, and a mowing speed of almost 6 mph.

And they’re catching fire among parks departments and landscapers across the U.S. Here’s the issue: Grass, especially wet grass, can be slick. And when employees use your typical riding cutter, they can slip and fall. That’s bad for workers and bad for employers.

River Management Symposium - Call for Presentations
Courtesy of the River Management Society

The River Management Society is proud to present the 2023 River Management Symposium, (February 28 - March 2, 2023) which will take place at the La Quinta Inn Riverside San Antonio, Texas, with the theme, “Reimagine River Access.” We welcome presentations, panels, and posters that share innovations, creative approaches, successes, and visions for the future of river access from river management professionals (e.g., managers, planners, academics, consultants, and students).

Tracks and Potential Topics
- Physical access
- Economic access
- Social access

Presentation Formats
- Poster presentation
- Paper or topic presentation
- Panel or roundtable discussion

For more information:
https://www.river-management.org/2023-symposium

In the News

Shrinking Great Salt Lake Is a Ticking Time Bomb
Courtesy of Planetizen

By James Brasuell

UTAH - The Great Salt Lake has shrunk in size by two-thirds. Christopher Flavelle reports for the New York Times of the dire environmental consequences of that trend continuing until the lake is gone:

The lake’s flies and brine shrimp would die off — scientists warn it could start as soon as this summer — threatening the 10 million migratory birds that stop at the lake annually to feed on the tiny creatures. Ski conditions at the resorts above Salt Lake City, a vital source of revenue, would deteriorate. The lucrative extraction of magnesium and other minerals from the lake could stop.

Most alarming, the air surrounding Salt Lake City would occasionally turn poisonous. The lake bed contains high levels of arsenic and as more of it becomes exposed, wind storms carry that arsenic into the lungs of nearby residents, who make up three-quarters of Utah’s population.

Reversing the shrinking would “require letting more snowmelt from the mountains flow to the lake, which means less water for residents and farmers,” which would also require stemming the state and region’s quick population growth.

Green Star Awards
Courtesy of NRPA

By Stephanie Bruno, CAE, and Anne Neal Petri

This year marks the 50th anniversary of the Professional Grounds Management Society’s (PGMS®) Green Star Awards® program, bringing national recognition to grounds maintained with a high degree of excellence.

In conjunction with the 2022 awards celebration, the National Association for Olmsted Parks (NAOP) and hundreds of organizations across the country celebrate the 200th anniversary of Frederick Law Olmsted’s birth. In a career spanning half a century, Olmsted designed some of the most famous landscapes in the United States, including Central Park in New York and the Emerald Necklace in Boston. Recognizing the profound influence of Olmsted as a social reformer and founder of American landscape architecture, PGMS® and NAOP collaborated on the new awards category “Olmsted Property,” which will recognize properties whose maintenance practices ensure the integrity of the historic landscape as part of the annual PGMS® Green Star Awards®. Going forward, NAOP will partner with PGMS® on educational offerings focused on the work and design principles of the Olmsted firm.

This $18 million playground doubles as an unusual barrier against rising sea levels
Courtesy of Fast Company

By Elissaveta M. Brandon

Perched at the southern tip of Manhattan, Battery Park is particularly vulnerable to flooding. In 2012, the low-lying region was pummeled by Hurricane Sandy, which flooded local tunnels, basements, and the nearby construction site at Ground Zero. But now, the area is protected by a growing network of sea walls, flip-up gates that can be deployed for a storm—and a playground.

The 1.5-acre playground also doubles as a resilient park and a line of defense against rising sea levels. Here, attractions include a bioswale that snakes under a series of wooden bridges and collects stormwater, four-ton boulders from upstate New York, and an 18-foot bluff that holds a series of slides and acts as an informal flood wall.

Navy SEAL use of state parks appears over as state declines to appeal judge’s decision
Courtesy of Seattle Times

By Hal Bernton

The Washington Attorney General’s office has declined to appeal a judge’s ruling that bans Navy SEAL or other military training in Washington state parks.

This appears to mark the demise of a high-profile, controversial permitting process that would have expanded to possibly 17 or more parks under a motion approved by the State Parks and Recreation Commission in January 2021.

“This should be the end of the road to the Navy’s using the state parks,” said Zachary Griefen, an attorney representing Whidbey Environmental Action Network, which filed a lawsuit in state Superior Court challenging the commission’s action.

Getting Into the Blue Zone
Courtesy of NRPA

By Lindsay Hogeboom

The Blue Zones Project takes lessons from communities around the world where people live much longer than average and applies them to promote health and wellness in other communities. Recreation and park departments can emulate Blue Zones by hosting social support groups, engaging entire communities and promoting physical activity, nutrition and green spaces, Lindsay Hogeboom writes.

Training

Upcoming Webinars from American Trails
Courtesy of American Trails

July 14: The Science of Sustainable Trail Design and Management

July 28: Understanding Your Trail Users: Enhancing Trail Management Using Location Intelligence

For more information:
https://www.americantrails.org/training/webinars

NRPA Annual Conference

September 20-22, 2022 - Phoenix, AZ

The NRPA Annual Conference is the premier annual meeting of the park and recreation community. Join thousands of people who are passionate about parks and recreation and making their communities great places for inspirational education sessions, energetic discussions and an inside look at the latest products for the field.

For more information:
https://www.nrpa.org/conference/

NACPRO | PO Box 74, Marienville, PA 16239 | (814) 927-8212

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